The Netherlands trip, Apr 2008 - Amsterdam the city

Some more random photos on Amsterdam the city.

Amsterdam is particularly famous for a few things: its "coffeeshop" and its red light district:




It is a very liberal country. The police will generally turn a blind eye if you do your thing in a enclosed space, away from the public. But you cause a nuisance to others, then the police may not easily let you go!

The Dam Square, the meeting place for the locals. The Royal Palace is in the background. And in the middle of the square stands the National Monument commemorating the victims of World War II

Another famous sight in Amsterdam is the Anne Frank huis (Anne Frank house), which is a museum dedicated to the WWII Jewish diarist, who hid from Nazi persecution with her family and four other people in hidden back rooms at the rear of the building.

The front to the Anne Frank huis. The adjoining building has also turned into part of the museum.

The canals in Amsterdam are also very well-known. There are more than 100 km of canals in Amsterdam and you can see bridges everywhere. In a city like this, almost all buildings are water-front property! :-)


A funny-shaped building


Next thing about Amsterdam? The flemish fries (vlaamse frites) and other deep-fried goodies, all served with mayonnaise of course!

Having fries and mayonnaise with a local friend. This tiny fry stand on Boetboogstraat seems to be really popular with both the locals and tourists. You can have your fries with a number of sauce: plain mayonnaise, lemon mayonnaise, ketchup, curry sauce, vinegar etc..

Then we went for a beer and had some Bitterballen along with it. It contains chopped meat with some kind of flavoring, breaded and deep fried, and served alongside with mayonnaise or mustard. Very tasty.